Chapter 27

Gemma

Vincent had his head slightly bent the whole time he was inside the trailer, but he didn’t look uncomfortable. His shoulders were shaking now, as he laughed gloriously. Dad was laughing, too, while Mom repeated the story of me learning to ride a bike. Probably for the hundredth time in her life. Now she had found someone new to tell it to.

“So, Gemma was determined, even as a kid,” Vincent said when his laughter subsided and he looked up at me.

Our soups and bread was finished, but we were still sitting at the table, laughing. How long had it even been?

“Always. You can’t fight her,” Dad said, throwing me a prideful look. I pouted my lips at him and Vincent laughed again. I had brought him here out of stubbornness, to show him why I had been so ashamed. And now he had managed to charm my parents and it felt like he had known them forever.

“You should have just told us where you were, honey, and we wouldn’t have worried so much for you,” Mom said suddenly, turning to me.

“Not her fault. I didn’t want people to find out where I was staying here,” Vincent cut in and I looked at him thankfully.

“Do you have the paparazzi following you everywhere?” Dad asked. He couldn’t hide his curiosity.

Vincent gave a short laugh and then he nodded. “A lot of the time, yes,” he said, exchanging looks with me.

“So, what’s going to happen now? You’re going to go back to Los Angeles? Back to work? Is vacation time over for you?” Mom asked, and my heart sank again. Did we really need to be talking about this, now? Just when things were going so well.

I avoided looking at Vincent, because I didn’t want to give away how anxious that had made me. How just the thought of not seeing him made me feel. I had no idea what any of this meant for our relationship, for us. Nothing had changed really. I still couldn’t change my life overnight. At least now, he knew why I was so uncomfortable in LA. Why I wanted to return home.

“Vacation is over indeed, but I might stay here, in Carlow Ridge, for a few days. Just until Gemma can figure out the details,” Vincent said, without looking at me. Mom and Dad both turned to me in unison, while I stared at Vincent. What was he talking about? What details?

“About what?” Mom asked, turning back around to Vincent.

“Packing up, moving…” Vincent said casually, settling back in his chair. He ran a hand through his hair, as he met Mom’s questioning gaze with his usual charming calmness.

“Moving? Where are you going?” Dad asked, now fixing me with a pleading stare. Mom didn’t dare ask me where I was going. The truth was that I didn’t know what Vincent was talking about.

“She’s moving to LA with me. She’s going to try and get into med school there,” he said, finally meeting my gaze. His black eyes were glittering, while the dimples on his cheeks appeared again. It looked like he was enjoying himself, making my heart race like that.

“Med school? You mean medical school? But, how?” Dad asked, pushing his empty bowl away from him. None of us had a clue what was going on.

“She’s going to start applying, once she finishes her biology degree. She can complete it in LA and then apply for med school there, if she wants to, of course,” Vincent said, looking me straight in the eye. He wasn’t making this decision for me. He was giving me a chance to refuse him. He was making a suggestion, but giving me the opportunity to run away from it if I wanted to.

“Is this true?” Mom asked beside me. All three of them were staring at me now.

“Yes, I want to study medicine. I’ve wanted to for a long time. I just couldn’t afford to go away from here,” I said, my voice breaking as I spoke. I still couldn’t afford to go away. Who would look after my parents? Where would I get the money?

“What about…?” Mom asked, even her voice was shaking now. She was thinking the same thing I was.

“I’ve offered her a job at my company. She can work there part-time while she finishes her biology degree,” Vincent said. He had thought of everything. When had he thought of all this?

When Mom looked at me, I was nodding.

“Don’t worry, Mom. I’ll take care of everything,” I said and reached for her hand.

“You’re going to have a big fancy job in LA? Our daughter?” Dad said, his voice hopping with excitement. I laughed, as did Mom, but she was tearful with joy.

Vincent was sitting back in his chair, with his arms crossed over his chest. He was smiling proudly at me. When our eyes met, I was thankful and surprisingly, he looked thankful, too. As though he was thankful for the decision I had made. He had given me one last opportunity to push him away, but I hadn’t. I was clinging on to him, because we both knew the truth. We couldn’t live a moment apart. Since we had first met, we had developed an instant addiction for each other. There was no escaping it now.

“You’re moving to LA!” Mom was talking too loudly now, excited and happy.

“And you should come visit us,” Vincent suggested, laughing with her.

“Can you imagine? Dan and I have been on an airplane only once before. What a treat!” Mom was saying, beaming at Dad.

I hadn’t seen them this happy in several years. They were thrilled for me, for themselves and at how unexpectedly everything just seemed to be working out. Vincent and I had our eyes locked on each other again. No, my fairytale wasn’t ending, it had only just begun.